Mattress display rack



May 25, 1965 DELANEY 3,185,306

MATTRESS DISPLAY RACK Filed March 9, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 l 4 [III/01111111 1/77 /77 077/7777,

47 5 7 [0/65 54 Away F BY AVTOEA/EVS y 1965 1.. DELANEY 3,185,306

MATTRESS DISPLAY RACK Filed March 9, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 N I: HIIHHIHIIIIIIIIhj l/ 1/ l INVENTOR.

ZUKE flfm/vm May 25, 1965 L. DELANEY MATTRESS DISPLAY BACK 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 9, 1964 1N VEN'TOR. LUKE Q62 A/VEV W s-W United States Patent 3,185,306 MATTRESS DISPLAY RACK Luke Delaney, 103 E. Main St., Bergenfield, NJ. Filed Mar. 9, 1964, Ser. No. 350,392 10 Claims. (Cl. 211-28) The present invention relates to supports and, more particularly, to an improved rack for displaying mattresses and the like.

The displaying of mattresses for beds to customers in stores has always been a problem because of the bulkiness of the mattresses and the inherent difliculty of one person handling the same. In the past, various types of racks have been devised for displaying the mattresses with the mattresses hung in a vertical position to minimize storage space. Such racks enabled the customers to view and inspect the mattresses, but did not afford an opportunity for the customers to test the com-fortabil-ity of the mattresses while in the position of normal use. In order to so test the mattresses, the salesman was required to remove the mattresses from the rack, place them on the floor or a bed, and then return them to the rack. This of course involved considerable manual efiort and became back breaking work for the salesman on a busy day.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to overcome the foregoing disadvantages and objections by providing an improved mattress rack which reduces storage space to a minimum, enables the mattresses to be displayed, inspected and tested in the position of the actual use, and requires a minimum of manual effort to move the mattresses @rom the storage position to the display position and vice versa.

Another object is to provide such a rack which is readily installed either against a wall or on the floor.

A further object is to provide such a rack which is light in weight but yet sturdy and is simple, practical and economical in construction.

Other and further objects will be obvious upon an understanding of the illustrative embodiment about to be described, or will be indicated in the appended claims, and various advantages not referred to herein will occur to one skilled in the art upon employment of the invention in practice.

In accordance with the present invention the foregoing objects are generally accomplished by providing a mat tress display rack which comprises a mattress holding frame which simulates mattress confining bed structure, a base or support for the frame, and hinge means foldably connecting the frame to the support to enable the frame to be folded from an upright position to a generally horizontal position and vice versa. In its preferred form, the support is pivot-ally mounted at one end to stand the mattress frame on end when the mattress is not being displayed; and a spring arrangement is provided for counterbalancing the weight of the rack and the mattress while moving the mattress from an onend position to a display position and vice versa.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of one embodiment of the present invention illustrating a mattress display rack in its upright on-end position.

FIG. 2 is a front elevational view taken along the line 22 on FIG. 1 illustrating a pair of racks arranged side by side.

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the rack shown in FIG. 1 in its upright on-floor position.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the rack shown in FIG. 1 as viewed along the line 4-4 on FIG. 2 illustrating the other side of the rack.

FIG. 5 is an end view of the rack taken along the line 5-5 on FIG. 3.

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FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 with the mattress frame in horizontal or display position.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view taken along the line 7-7 on FIG. '3 with the mattress removed from the rack and illustrating the rack in an upright position in full lines and in a horizontal position in broken lines.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the mattress frame and its support.

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of another embodiment of the present invention.

Referring now in detail to FIGS. 1 to 8 of the drawings, there is shown a mattress display rack which generally comprises a rectangular frame .19 for a mattress M, an upright base or support 11 for the frame, and a counterbalancing spring arrangement 12, described in greater detail hereinafter.

The frame 10 (see FIG. 8) comprises lengthwise extending side members 14 and '15, crosswise extending end members .15 and 17, an intermediate lengthwise extending member 18 parallel to and adjacently spaced from the side member 15, a side frame section'19 on the side member .15, an end frame section 20 on the end member 17, an upwardly projecting member 21 on the end member 16, the members '14 to 18 serving to support the mattress and the frame sections 19 and 20 and the member 21 serving to confine the mattress on these supporting members, and straps 22 connected to the side member 14 and the side frame section '19 for holding the mattress on the frame.

The base or support 11 comprises lengthwise extending upper and lower members 24 and 25, respectively, and crosswise extending end members 2s and 27 and intermediate members 28 and 29. In order to support the base 11 in upright on-floor position (FIG. 3) and on-end position (FIGS. 1 and 4), the base 11 is provided at one end with a frame structure 23 (-FIG. 8) which comprises the end member 27 and an extension 27' thereof, upper and lower crosswise extending members 30 and 31, respectively, connected respectively to the extension 27' and the member 27, an upright member 32 connected to the outer ends of the members 30 and 31, and a strut 34 connected to the outer end of the member 3 1 and to the member 25 adjacent the member 29.

The frame 10 is foldably mounted on the support 11 (FIG. 7) by a plurality of spaced hinges 35 connected to the intermediate member 18 of the frame and the upper member 24 of the support, so that the frame 10 can be folded into an upright position (.FIG. 5) and into a generally horizontal position (FIG. 6). The side member 14 of the frame 10 for such purposes has a pair of legs 36 thereon which cooperate with the support 11 to display the mattress in a horizontal position. Preferably, the legs 36 are :foldably connected, so that they can be extended (FIGS. 6 and 7) and can be folded against the member 14 (FIG. 8) when not in use.

The end of the support 11, where the frame structure 23 is located, is pivotally mounted on the floor F to enable the rack to be moved from an upright on-floor position (FIG. 3) to an upright on-end position (FIGS. 1 and 4) and vice versa. Preferably, this is accomplished by hinges 37 secured to the floor through a cross member 37' and connected to the lower member 31 of the structure 23.

At the opposite or free end of the support 11, a stand or cushion 38 (FIG. 8) is secured to the floor F for supporting the lower member 25 when the support 11 is placed on the floor, as shown in FIG. 3, to maintain the upper and lower members 24 and 25 of the support in a truly horizontal position, whereby, when the mattress frame 10 is folded to the position shown in FIG. 6, the frame and the mattress thereon also are maintained in a truly horizontal position.

47 to the wall near the floor or to the floor near the Wall under which the cable 42 passes.

In operation, the mattress rack, when not in use, s in an upright on-end position with the frame 10 and the support 11 disposed in' substantially the same Vertical plane, as shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, whereby the spring 40 is contracted. In order to display-the mattress, the frame 10 is grasped manually near the upper end and is pivoted clockwise, as viewed in FIG. 1, on the hinges 37 to the upright on-fioor position, shown in FIGS. 3, and 7. v

As such pivotal movement commences, the support 11 and its arm 23 act as alever system to overcome the force of the spring 40 and minimize the manual efiort required to extend the spring. As the rack is pivoted in this manner, the spring 40 is extended to counterbalance the weight of the rack and the mattress thereon after the rack has been pivoted in excess of 45 with respect to the vertical, wherebysuch weight is greatly relieved and little manual effort isrequired to safely lower the rack to its on-floor position.

.' .The legs 36 are then unfolded and the frame is .that the frame is hing-ed upwardly 'of the lower edge of the mattressthereon (FIG. 3), the portion of the mattress extending below the hinges partially counterbalances the portion of the mattress projecting above the hinges 35, whereby manual effort to move the, mattress from an upright to a horizontal posit-ion and vice versa is mini? mized.

After the mattress has been displayed, the reverse operational procedure is followed. Thus, when the rack is moved from the position shown in FIG. 3 to the position shown in FIG. 1, the force of the spring 40 assists in placing the rack on its on-end position.

Referring to FIG. 9, there is shown in detail a rack which is identical to the rack described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 8, with a modified spring arrangement 12. As shown in FIG. 9, the rack is on the floor F and away from the wall (not shown) and, when the mattress is not being displayed, the rack is placed on end, as shown in broken lines.

The modified spring arrangement, shown in FIG. 9, comprises a spring 40 secured at one end to the fioor at 41,. below the rack but to one side thereof, a cable 42 having one end connected to the other or free end of the spring at 44 and having itsother end secured to the upper or free end of the arm 23 at 45, and a pulley 46 secured by a bracket 47 to the floor at a point spaced from the hinges 37 a sufiicient distance, so that the bracket 47 will not interfere with the rack when placed in on-end position. Since the spring 40 in this arrangement extends across the floor, a tube 48 for housing the spring is provided, which tube serves as a guard and keeps the spring clean.

The operation of the rack provided with the modified spring arrangement shown in'FIG. 9, is identical to the operation described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 7 and need not be repeated.

From the foregoing description it will be seen that the present invention provides an improved mattress display rack which is simple and economical in construction and is extremely easy and convenient to operate by persons not having great physical strength. While the rack is constructed of a minimum of light weight parts, it is yet sturdy in construction and can withstand such rough usage to which it is normally subjected.

As various changes may be made in the form, construction, and arrangement of the. parts herein, without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and without sacrificing any of its advantages, it is to be understood that all matters are to be interpreted as illustrative and not in any limiting sense.

What is claimed is: V

1. A mattress display rack comprising a mattress holding frame, an uprightsupport extending lengthwise with respect to said frame adjacent one side thereof, hinge means foldably connecting said frame to said support to enable said frame to be folded from an upright position to a generally horizontal position and vice versa,.and means for pivotally mounting one end of said support on a floor to enable said support to be mounted on end when the rack is not in use.

2. A rack according to claim 1, wherein said support mounting means is a hinge adapted to be secured to the floor. v

3. A rack according to claim '1, including an arm on saidsupport at one end thereof, and spring means having a first ,endssecured to a fixed structure and having a second end operatively connected to a free end of said arm to counterbalance the weight of said support, said frame, and a mattress held by said frame while pivoting said support from a horizontal position to an on-end position and vice versa.

4. A rack according to claim 3, wherein said spring means include a tension spring, a flexible cable secured at one end to the free end of said spring and secured at its other end to said arm, and means spaced from the fixed end of said spring and secured to the fixed structure for guiding said cable.

5. A rack according to claim 4, including a housing for said spring.

6. A rack according to claim 4, wherein the fixed end of said spring is secured to a wall and said guide means is mounted adjacent the lower end of the wall. 7. A rack according to claim 4, wherein the fixed end of said spring is secured to the floor adjacent the end of said support opposite the end where said arm is located and said guide means is secured to the floor at a point spaced'forwardly of the end of said support where said arm is located.

8. A rack according to claim 7, wherein said support mounting means is a hinge secured to the floor between the fixed end of the said spring and said guide means.

9. A rack according to claim 3, wherein said arm is a frame structure.

10. A rack according to claim 9, including hinge means pivotally connecting the lower end of said frame structure to the floor.

References Cited by the Examiner FOREIGN PATENTS 569,616 5/45 Great Britain.

CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner. 

1. A MATTRESS DISPLAY RACK COMPRISING A MATTRESS HOLDING FRAME, AN UPRIGHT SUPPORT EXTENDING LENGTHWISE WITH RESPECT TO SAID FRAME ADJACENT ONE SIDE THEREOF, HINGE MEANS FOLDABLY CONNECTING SAID FRAME TO SAID SUPPORT TO ENABLE SAID FRAME TO BE FOLDED FROM AN UPRIGHT POSITION TO A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL POSITION AND VICE VERSA, AND MEANS FOR PIVOTALLY MOUNTING ONE END OF SAID SUPPORT ON A FLOOR TO ENABLE SAID SUPPORT TO BE MOUNTED ON END WHEN THE RACK IS NOT IN USE. 